Final part! Cry tears with me as I put an end to this Angsty toasted flake...enjoy my lovelies :3
and don't forget to leave a review! I like reading what you all think of my work. ^u^
By My Side
"No, you're not...because...you're not real." He said with a smile.
Marinette gaped at him for a few moments, before returning the grin. She leaned in close and put her arms around his neck.
"It's about time. I thought you'd never see it."
This time it was Adrien's turn to blink. Marinette's features slowly began to give of a faint glow.
"Mari..." he said, bewildered and heartbroken.
She leaned in further until her forehead was pressed against his.
"I'm so proud of you. The way you're dealing with all the chaos. The way you were true to your words." she breathed.
Adrien held his breath. Was this really happening? If it was, then let it continue for eternity, if not, then he wished that he'd never wake up.
She slowly reeled back cupping his cheeks. "I missed you so much kitty. I can't tell you how happy I am to see that you're still coping."
Adrien felt her touch bloom warmth into his cheeks, seeping downward until it reached his chest, pumping through his blood until it filled every cell in his body. It was a feeling of complete serenity, a feeling only she had the power to bring upon him. He hadn't felt so whole in days. He slowly brought his hands up and gripped her wrists.
"M-mari...I miss you too. Please come back to me. Please come home. "He pleaded, his voice catching near the end.
Marinette looked at him through dejected eyes, glistening with tears, sucking in her lips.
"I know. I wish I could." She whispered.
She caressed his face, a sad smile on her lips. "You know I actually meant what I said, right? That I'll always be here, by your side."
"By my side." Adrien repeated.
Marinette leaned forward and collapsed into him. He held her tight, his chin resting on her shoulder. She ran her hands through his bushy hair, grabbing globs of it before sighing audibly, lips skimming his ear.
"I don't know if I made this clear enough last time, so I'll say it once again."
Adrien felt his heart throb, real or not, he knew that she wouldn't stay. That she was truly gone.
"I love you Adrien Agreste. Always have. Always will, never forget that." She whispered.
Slowly, she pulled back, gently cupping his cheeks once again and lowered her lips to his. They were a breath a part, the air between them dancing with fusion, tickling their skin. Adrien withdrew his arms from around her waist and reached up to cup her face as well, his thumb stroking her moist, salty, cheeks before reaching for those rosy pink lips.
A surge of vehemence swallowed the two whole. They were stars twinkling in the infinite universe. Giving and taking greedily. Adrien angled his jaw, breaking for a split second for air and then dove right back under. They were drowning in each other, drinking up what they had to offer. She ran her hands through his tangled locks, grabbing them while angling her face, deepening the kiss. Adrien welcomed her, opened his heart and poured everything he was out to her. He was parched and she was his well. Pressing his forearms to her back, he mended his body into hers. He knew this would be the last time he'd ever burn in the flames of passion which licked his soul. Like stars they danced away, glowing brighter and brighter. Eyes shut, he still made out the dramatic increase of light which illumined around her. Like stars they came crashing down, breaking apart, gasping for air. Like a shooting star, he longed to make a wish, one that he knew was impossible to grant.
Adrien gazed at her, as the halo of light continued to shimmer and glow brighter. Like a star she was near her end. For only Super Noves illuminate such phenomenal masses of light, a last show case of their beauty before they die. Before their existence is forever forgotten.
He watched her as the twinkle and shimmer enveloped her completely until she was only a colour of angelic white. She placed her hands on his chest and gently pushed him back until he was laying back down. She brushed his mane of hair out of his face and caressed it gently one last time, memorizing all his features before softly pressing her lips to his.
It was different this time, a parting gift which lasted for a few seconds before she pulled back, leaving a tingle on his lips. He felt the twinkling lights fade way. Adrien slowly creaked his eyes open, a flood of emotions racing through his veins. His head buzzed and he heard faint voices in the distance.
"See I told you, the kids okay!"
The voice was grouchy but the one which followed was high pitched and sounded heart broken.
" Plagg, he was screaming, I don't know how much more of this I can take."
Adrien recognized the voices and rubbed his eyes before slowly propping himself up. He couldn't decipher what he felt. It wasn't a sickening feeling, but it wasn't a stellar one either. He blinked a couple of times and let his eyes adjust to the soothing, golden, dimmed, lighting in the room.
Plagg zipped in front of him, chasing after Tikki.
"Adrien! Are you ok?" Tikki yelped at the same time as Plagg squealed "Do you have more cheese?"
Tikki glared at the black cat kwami which made him shut his pipe hole.
" Yeah I'm fine...hey Tikki, you said I was screaming?" He said, rubbing his head.
Last night was a bit of a blur, heck the entire week was a blur, for Adrien had lost his ability to emote. He was a robot, going through life with programmed motion, doing tasks on pure gut instinct without putting much thought to it. He believed he had cried himself to sleep yet again, exhausted from mourning and trying to keep his feelings in check to prevent himself from becoming an akuma.
"Yeah, you were screaming...but only for a while." Tikki said passively.
" That wasn't the only thing he was doing." Plagg interjected, smirking.
Adrien brought his attention to his kwami who was devouring the last piece of Camembert on the bedside plate.
" What do you mean?" Adrien asked curiously.
" Let's just say your pillow was being assaulted by your face...and here I thought curiosity killed the cat."
"Plagg." Tikki warned. Adrien was profoundly confused as he saw his kwami's eyes winded and ears shoot up, only to droop back down, flat against his bulbous head. Whatever her tone had implied, it made Plagg think twice about what he had uttered.
Adrien lifted his fingers to his lips which still tingled from the kiss. A kiss that had never taken place. However, he was starting to believe maybe that wasn't the case.
"Tikki...I think I saw Mari. No...that came out wrong, I know I saw her, and I felt her too."
"Oh Adrien...you two were really close. By far, the closest both in and out of costume compared with all the previous ladybugs and chat noirs. Off course you'll feel her presence."
Adrien blinked at the kwami.
"No. That's no what I mean. I felt her as in she was physically here. She told me about how she'll always be there for me and how she knows what's going on and-" Adrien stopped mid -way because of the look that both kwamis gave him. It was of complete shock.
Tikki turned her head toward Plagg. "I told you she knew...I can't believe she actually figured it out."
Adrien was confused. What was the kwami talking about?
"No...that means that we'll be..." Plagg muttered.
At hearing this, Adrien witnessed something enough to break his heart-not that it wasn't already broken. Seeping through her lids, he saw a single shred of tear roll down the little kwami's face.
"Tikki?" Adrien said softly, reaching for the kwami that floated in front of him. He held her in his hands and pet her head. Plagg zoomed to her side, crouching down in front of her, on Adrien's hands. He used his plush-like hand and delicately wiped the tear away.
" Tikki, I'm not good at this sappy stuff but please don't cry. It'll falter the balance."
Adrien decided that it was time he stepped into the conversation. He wanted to know what they were hiding.
" What's going on? Is there something you two aren't telling me"
Plagg slowly turned and lifted his head to meet Adrien's gaze. With a sigh, he began.
"W-we think Marinette found some old scrolls containing a relic from the past. She somehow managed to understand it...and used it on herself...umm-Tikki I'm not good at this!"
With a sigh Tikki continued for him.
" Once she cast the spell, she was ensured that when death would be fall her, she'd be trapped in a void - a realm of magic. If enough energy is used, and a relic of hers is left behind, in this case her miraculous-the earrings, she could bring herself back but it's really complex. Once the visit is sealed, she is let out of the realm and can no longer acquire any visits. The thing is, now with her gone...the guardian h-he..." Her voice caught at the end. Plagg collected Tikki up, stroking the back of her head while the little pink kwami buried her face into her plush like hands.
" The guardian will come for Tikki and she'll be locked away in the chest...at least until another suitable Ladybug is found." plagg ended for her, eyes lowered. Adrien's heart stammered and his blood ran cold.
a new Ladybug?
No. There was no such thing. He wouldn't allow this to happen, how could he even think to replace Marinette? She was on of a kind. She was his other half, his soulmate. Adrien felt sick and betrayed. Suddenly he didn't want his freedom as Chat Noir anymore, locked in his own house or not, he didn't want it.
He hadn't transformed at all since his loved one's death, not just because he was mourning and felt broken but also because Hawkmoth was being eerily quiet, and the akumas had stopped. The only reason he kept his miraculous around was because of Plagg. Now that he was weighed down by this alarming news, he didn't want to be a hero. After all, who was he without his lady? Putting on a costume is easy, but putting on the right attitude is difficult and Adrien knew no one else in Paris could be capable of doing this as perfectly as Marinette.
He realized that if he were to keep the ring, then, not only would he hurt himself but also Plagg and Tikki. They were literally two halves of a whole and because of his tragic loss, he knew the feeling of emptiness all too well.
He couldn't bear the thought of him letting Plagg watch Tikki break down and then be locked away. Most importantly, he couldn't bear to even comprehend the possibility of working next to another ladybug, one who wasn't his bugaboo.
He needed Mari.
Without her, existence was worthless. He already felt his soul shedding itself, little by little every day. The pain was already hard to restrain, clinging to him like a mass of mist and grey. He felt like a cloud of anguish was always hovering above his head, torturing his soul from what was and what could have been. The weight of the pain was too heavy to hold up and now, he found that it would be easier to let go. He felt like a stray and life seemed too long to live alone. He was losing himself, and he couldn't stop it.
It was here, at this moment when Adrien Agreste realized, like his lover, he too was dying.
"And that is all I know" the green, turtle-like, pixie-sized creature said in a calm, collected voice.
The old man with a red, Hawaiian themed shirt with white printed flowers stroked his beard. It was obvious he was of Chinese descent.
"hmmm, very interesting, make sure to add that to the banking scrolls of holders. Thank you, Wayzz." The man said while picking out a book from the enormous book shelf lined with thousands of old scrolls and ancient books.
" How long do you think he has, master?" The little kwami piped up.
"It is hard to say, from what has happened in the past, usually its the black cat that goes first, but since its the lady bug that has passed I'd say about a couple of months at most, depending on his emotional state."
"I agree Master, especially now that he has generously returned the miraculous to prevent any damage to be done to Tikki...I've never seen her shed tears before, it is very unlike her."
The old man closed the giant book and safely put it back onto it's correct spot on the bookshelf. He looked down at his kwami, gloom swimming in his eyes. He sighed heavily.
" Well, at least now we can retrieve Nooroo. It's a tragedy; they never go this quick, and at such a young age. If I had known that fate would twist it's words then I would have never let them reveal themselves to each other."
It was quiet for a moment, neither the guardian nor the kwami spoke. Both of them aware of the weight that he now had to lift off their chests. But that duty came along with the job. He had to live his life protecting the miraculous along with the stories of its holders, he also had to carry the burden of their deaths on his shoulders.
"Well Wayzz, you may return to the main room. Check on Tikki and Plagg and be sure to let them know that their physical presence will run out in due time. The miraculous can only hold on for so long."
With a bow the kwami turned and dashed right through the wooden wall like a ghost.
The guardian sighed, although he had known about the risk that came along with the miraculous, he didn't expect to see two losses in one go. This time, he would bury the third chat noir he had picked out ever since he became the guardian.
He chuckled. How ironic was the tittle he had been given when he couldn't even live up to it - guard the innocent holders from meeting a treacherous fate.
Maybe that's why it's called star crossed love.